Truck side frame



Jan 3, 1933. T. H. SYMINGTON TRUCK S IDE FRAME Filed NOV. 11. 1931 w? my 4 rQT WJw m W :33 r W 3? a 1 7 QWQ 1 .3 x a Z I a t V/%% m m W/QM m i7W Patented Jan. 3, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE THOMAS H.SYMINGTON, DECEASED, LATE OF BALTIIMOBE, IIARYLAND, BY EDITH R.SYMINGTON AND THOMAS E. SYMINGTON, EXECUTORS, OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND,ASSIGNORS TO T. H. SYMINGTON & SON, INCL, OF BALTIIWOBE, MARYLAND, ACOR- IPOR-ATION OF MARYLAND TRUCK SIDE FRAME Application filed. November11, 1931.

The invention relates to railway car trucks and has special reference tothe construction of side frames.

The principal object of the invention, generally stated, is to provide atruck side frame of the castintegral journal box type having a novelconstruction at the juncture of the compression and tension members witheach other and with the journal box, the most not able characteristicbeing the location of the thrust transmitting elements and thedistribution of the metal which are such as to attain the substantiallyideal condition, that is to say the concentration of the load at theworking joints.

Another object is to provide a side frame in which the tension member isspaced above the inner upper edge of the box instead of merging directlythereinto as is common practice, diagonally extending ribs beingprovided which merge into the side walls of the tension member and intothe upper inner edge of the box, these ribs cooperating with other ribswhich will insure proper strength at the location specified withoutchunkiness or undue thickness of metal.

A very important but specific object of the invention is to provide anovel reinforcement at the roof of the journal box whereby the verticalthrust coming thereon will be carried straight up and transmitted inshear to the junction of the tension and compression members.

Another object is to provide a construction of this character in whichby virtue of the carrying of the maximum load to the working points ofthe neutral axes of the tension and compression members, the side wallsof the juncture of these members may be materially lightened.

An additional object is to provide a side frame possessing theseadvantageous characteristics and which will at the same time be no moreexpensive to make than the ordinary type and which will moreover beextremely strong and durable in service, anda general improvement in theart.

To the attainment of the foregoing and other objects and advantages, theinvention preferably consists in the details of construc- Serial No.574,436.

tion and the arrangement and combination of parts to be hereinafter morefully described and claimed, and illustrated in the accompanying drawingin which:

Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal section through one end portion of aside frame constructed in accordance with the invention,

Figure 2 is a fragmentary end elevation,

Figure 3 is a horizontal cross section taken on the line 38 of Figure 1,and

Figure 4 is a detail fragmentary section taken on the line 4.-1 ofFigure 1.

' Referring more particularly to the drawing, it will be observed in thefirst place that there is disclosed a side frame of the cast integraljournal box type, the frame including compression and tension members 5and 6 channel shaped in cross section with their open sides toward eachother and provided on their inner faces at the open sides with beads 7and 8, respectively. These compression and tension members convergeoutwardly of the center of the frame and merge into each other and intothe journal box 9, this juncture being indicated generally by thenumeral 10. The beads 7 and 8 join at 11. Moreover the members 5 and 6preferably connect at a point somewhat inwardlly of the journalbox bydiagonal ties 12 which may be provided with stiffening ribs 13.

The compressionmember 5 has its outer end portion curved downwardly at14 and bifurcated at 15, thereby defining Webs 16 which fade out as thismember joins the top of the box. The tension member has its web orbottom wall definitely spaced above the upper inner ed e of the boxinstead of merging directly thereinto as is usually the case, and aproper bracing action is attained by the provision of diagonal ribs 17and 18 which extend at right angles to the sides of the tension memberand which merge thereinto, the former fading out at the front endportion of the box and the latter being joined onto the wall of the dustguard pocket 19. In addition, ribs 20 are provided at the upper inneredge of the journal box at the juncture of the tension member therewith.

Beginning at a point substantially over this edge of the box the web orbottom wall of the tension member 6 is bifurcated at 21, therebydefining inclined webs 22 which fade off or merge into the sides of thejuncture 10 above substantially the center of the journal box, thesewebs increasing in thickness as their width diminishes to compensate forthe loss of area resulting from the bifurcation.

To take the upward thrust upon the journal box and to transmit itdirectly to the juncture 10 of the compression and tension members,there is provided a very heavy transverse rib 23 formed on the roof 24of the box and having its sides deflected or extended upwardly abruptlyas shown at 25 in Figure 2. This rib is of considerable height, thepoints where its upper corners merge into the side walls of the juncture10 being at the point 26 which is the intersection of the neutral axes27 and 28 of the compression and tension members, respectively. Inaddition it is preferable to provide pairs of inclined or substantiallytriangular ribs 29 and 30 which rise preferably at an angle offorty-five degrees from the roof 24 of the box and which likewise mergeinto the side walls of the juncture 10. These pairs of ribs are locatedat opposite sides of the center of the box and are preferablyequi-distant therefrom as clearly illustrated in Figure 1. These ribscombined with the heavy rib 23 are capable of transmitting the loadvertically with perfeet safety and as a matter of fact the rib 23 alonecan be relied upon to carry the entire vetrical load of the side frameand transmit it in shear to the juncture 10 of the tension andcompression members.

As an additional factor of strength the inside guide lugs 31 in thejournal box are preferably flared outwardly at their upper ends 32 wherethey join the roof of the box as indicated in Figure 2. Inasmuch as thecentral roof reinforcing rib 23 is to carry the maximum load to theworking points of the neutral axes of the compression and tensionmembers, it is easily possible to lighten the side walls of the juncture10 without sacrificing strength. As a consequence the metal at the areas33 between the central rib 23 and the ribs 29 and 30 may be made quitethin as clearly shown in Figure 3. Moreover the tension member may havethe thickest portion of its side walls adjacent the journal box as shownat 34, the metal thinning out or being lightened from the bifurcation 21away from the journal box to approximately the point 35 from which pointthe thickness is preferably uniform.

A side frame constructed as shown and described is of course used in thesame manner as any other but has the great advantage of increasedstrength and rigidity. The lateral forces exerted by the journal box aretransmitted to the tension member by virtue of the diagonal ribs 17 and18 and the upward thrusts are transmitted through the transverse rib 23vertically upward directly to the sides of the juncture of thecompression and tension members. On account of the heavy rib 23 and theauxiliary pairs of ribs 29 and 30 it is clear that the ribs usuallyprovided on the journal box roof and extending to the outer sides of thejuncture may be eliminated as sufficient strength is provided Withouttheir presence. All the characteristics have been discussed above and itis consequently believed that the construction, operation and advantagesshould be readily apparent to one skilled in the art without furtherexplanation.

WVhile there is shown and described the preferred embodiment of theinvention, it should be understood that the disclosure is merely anexemplification of the principles involved as the right is reserved tomake all such changes in the details of construction as will widen thefield of utility and increase the adaptability of the device providedsuch changes constitute no departure from the spirit of the invention orthe scope of the claims hereunto appended.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is: v

1. In a side frame, compression and tension members having their outerends converging and joined to an integral journal box, means formed onthe roof of the box and extending upwardly with respect thereto andjoined to the inner faces of the sides of the juncture of thecompression and tension members for transmitting vertical loads directlythereto, said means comprising a relatively heavy transverse rib locatedat the center of the roof and having a horizontal intermediate portionand abruptly ascending end portions joining said juncture, and auxiliaryribs arranged in pairs and rising from the journal box roof at oppositesides of the first named rib and merging into the inner faces of thejuncture of the compression and tension members.

2. In a side frame, compression and tension members having their outerends converging and joined to an integral journal box, means formed onthe roof of the box and extending upwardly with respect thereto andjoined to the inner faces of the sides of the juncture of thecompression and tension members for transmitting vertical loads directlythereto, said means comprising a relatively heavy transverse rib locatedat the center of the roof and having a horizontal intermediate portionand abruptly ascending end portions joining said juncture, and auxiliaryribs arranged in pairs and rising from the journal box roof at oppositesides of the first named rib and merging into the inner faces of thejuncture of the compression and tension members, said auxiliary ribsinclining upwardly and outwardly and merging into the juncture of thecompression and tension members at points considerably below the mergingof the first named rib into the juncture.

3. In a side frame, compression and tension members having their outerends converging and joined to an integral journal box, means formed onthe roof of the box and extending upwardly with respect thereto andjoined to the inner faces of the sides of the juncture of thecompression and tension members for transmitting vertical loads directlythereto, said means comprising a relatively heavy transverse rib locatedat the center of the roof and having a horizontal intermediate portionand abruptly ascending end portions joining said juncture, and auxiliaryribs arranged in pairs and rising from the ournal box roof at oppositesides of the first named rib and merging into the inner faces of thejuncture of the compression and tension members, said auxiliary ribsinclining upwardly and outwardly at an angle of substantially forty-fivedegrees.

4. In a side frame, compression and tension members converging outwardlyand joined to each other and to an integral journal box, the tensionmember having its bottom Wall or web spaced above the upper inner edgeof the box, diagonal ribs joined to the sides of the tension members andthe upper inner edge of the journal box for transmitting transverseforces from the journal box to the tension member, and a relativelyheavy transverse rib on the journal box roof at the center thereof andmerging into the inner faces of the juncture of the compression andtension members for transmitting vertical forces to said members.

5. In a side frame, compression and tension members converging outwardlyand joined to each other and to an integral journal box, the tensionmember having its bottom wall or Web spaced above the upper inner edgeof the box, diagonal ribs joined to the sides of the tension member andthe inner edge of the journal box for transmitting transverse forcesfrom the journal box to the tension member, and a relatively heavytransverse rib on the journal box roof at the center thereof and merginginto the inner faces of the juncture of the compression and tensionmembers for transmitting vertical forces to said members, the upperextremities of said rib extending to the intersection of the neutralaxes of the compression and tension members.

6. In a side. frame, compression and tension members convergingoutwardly and joined to each other and to an integral journal box, thetension member having its bottom wall or web spaced above the upperinner edge of the box, diagonal ribs joined to the sides of the tensionmember and the upper inner edge of the journal box for transmittmgtransverse forces from the journal box to the tension member, and arelatively heavy transverse rib on the journal box roof at the centerthereof and merging into the inner faces of the juncture of thecompression and tension members for transmitting Vertical forces to saidmembers, said web of the tension member being bifurcated from a pointabove the inner upper edge of the box to define inclined webs merginginto the inner faces of the juncture of the compression and tensionmembers immediately adjacent the transverse rib.

7. In a side frame, compression and tension members converging outwardlyand joined to each other and to an integral journal box, a tensionmember having its bottom wall or web spaced above the inner edge of thebox, diagonal ribs joined to the sides of the tension member and theupper inner edge of the journal box for transmitting transverse forcesfrom the journal box to the tension member, a relatively heavytransverse rib on the journal box roof, and auxiliary non-continuousdiagonally disposed ribs spaced respectively outwardly and inwardly ofsaid heavier rib joining at the side walls forming the intersection ofthe tension and compression members, said side Walls being of reducedthickness between the outwardly disposed auxiliary ribs and the maincentral transverse rib, said transverse rib and ribs operating totransmit vertical forces to the intersecting resistance lines of thetension and compression members.

8. In a side frame, compression and tension members having their outerends converging and joined to an integral journal box, and means formedon the roof of the box and extending upwardly with respect thereto andjoined to the inner faces of the sides of the juncture of thecompression and tension members, said sides being reduced in thicknessbetween said means and the bottom edge of the tension member, said meansoperating to transmit vertical loads directly to the tension andcompression members, said means comprising a relatively heavy transverserib located at the center of the roof and having a horizontalintermediate portion and abruptly ascending end portions joining saidjuncture, and auxiliary noncontinuous ribs disposed on both sides ofsaid continuous rib and assisting said first named rib in transmittingvertical forces to the juncture of the tension and compression members.

In testimony whereof we affix our signatures.

EDITH R. SYMINGTON, THOMAS R. SYMINGTON, Ewecutors 0f the Estate ofThomas H.

Syme'ngton, Deceased.

